


setting fire to our insides

by hopeforhosie



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Soulmates, but hosie is endgame, does have posie and handon, this is my first work on here aasdfghjkl
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-06
Updated: 2019-03-18
Packaged: 2019-11-12 22:28:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18019625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hopeforhosie/pseuds/hopeforhosie
Summary: Josie and Penelope cast a spell to see if they're soulmates.It doesn't go as planned.





	1. we were supposed to be soulmates

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Legacies fic so I don't have the greatest grasp of the characters yet. I'll get into the groove as the fic goes on! Also, I haven't seen The Originals and I'm on Season 3 of TVD so lore WILL be off.

SMACK. SMACK. SMACK.

Josie snapped awake and was hit in the face by a flying sweater. She screamed and covered her head. “Lizzie! What the hell?”

SMACK. SMACK. SMACK. More clothes littered both beds and the floor, and more were flying in swarms to the ceiling. The ceiling fan rattled as shirts lodged themselves into the blades. A necklace attacked Josie and tried to cut off her arm’s blood circulation. Josie pulled and finally yanked her arm free.

“Good, you’re awake,” Lizzie said, and her voice had that dangerous air of an ax murderer about to kill someone. “I need you to help me pick an outfit.”

Josie glanced around at the shirts flying everywhere. She couldn’t even see the individual clothing pieces, much less pick an entire outfit. “For what? What’s happening today?” She ran the date through her head, but all she got was it was it was spring break still and, oh yeah, both Lizzie and Hope knew about the time she was thirteen and set the school aflame because she had a crush.

“I’m going to break up Hope and Landon,” Lizzie stated. With the statement, a pair of jean shorts came whizzing towards Josie’s head, but she was too stunned to duck.

She took a faceful of denim. “Excuse me?”

“Don’t sound so  _ shocked _ ,” Lizzie went on. She sounded oddly calm for a meltdown. Was this a meltdown? Was it  _ going  _ to be a meltdown? “I’m a bad sister, remember?”

It was too early in the morning for this. Josie shook her head. “What?”

“I’m a bad sister,” Lizzie insisted, her voice raising slightly. “Isn’t that what you said? I’m going to go after Hope now? Because you have a crush on her? Did you say that or not?”

Josie tried to interject, but it was hard when Lizzie was ranting. “Look, I don’t--”

Lizzie  _ screamed _ .

It hit Josie’s ears as painfully as the jeans’ slap to the face; she covered her ears and screwed her eyes shut. There was always something supernatural about Lizzie’s screams. The noise was as loud and as strangled as a crowd being shot at, and the damage to the room around her was something else.

The ceiling fan began to spin rapidly, flinging clothes everywhere; objects lifted off the nightstands and the desks and drove themselves into the ceiling; lightbulbs burst and glass rained down on them all.

Josie whipped the blanket over her head. “Lizzie! Lizzie! Stop! You’re not a bad sister! You’re really not!”

Lizzie had seemed perfectly fine last night. She had gone straight to bed seconds after Hope left, and was sound asleep before Josie’s head had even hit the pillow. Usually an upset Lizzie would process her feelings the whole night, saying stuff like, “You think Rafael actually likes Hope? Or do slugs make people lie? You kissed Penelope on slugs, so wasn’t that you lying? Right? Josie, are you asleep? Wake up!”

Josie should’ve known Lizzie’s silence meant something dangerous was brewing in her.

Lizzie screamed again, a word this time: “ _ LIAR!” _

“Lizzie,” Josie complained, still protecting herself with a blanket.

“Isn’t that what you said, Jose? You’re right. I’m going after Hope. I’m gonna seduce her and make her my girlfriend. I’m going to win. Do you still have a crush on her, Josie? Do you still love her? Today? Right now?”

“I’m—“ Josie could barely hear herself over the whining the fan was making as it spun out of control.

“I knew it!” Lizzie shrieked, and all the broken shards of ceramic vases they had made in art class rose up, cracked the ceiling, and splintered into tiny pieces on the floor. “You still have a crush on her--”

Josie took the blanket off her head and screamed back: “I never said that! I don’t have a crush on Hope still, Lizzie! I don’t!”

Lizzie whipped her hands out and an armchair smashed into the wall, leaving a great big dent next to Josie’s painting of a vase. “You’ve been lying to me this whole time, so how can I possibly believe you now?”

Josie hopped off the bed. She wasn’t the right person to calm Lizzie down, not this time. “I’m getting Dad.”

But as she turned to leave, the door blew open and Hope stood there with her arms outspread. A small crowd of students were behind her, and more were coming, curious about the noise.

Hope put her hands down and stormed in. The door slammed shut behind her, blocking the ogling students from seeing what was going on. “What the hell, guys?”

“Oh no,” Lizzie groaned, shaking her head. “Not you--” 

Her eyes burned with rage and she flung her arms out, directing the storm straight at Hope, who retaliated with a protection spell that formed a bubble around her and Josie. Lizzie’s schoolbooks slammed into the bubble and fell to the carpet. Lizzie screamed in frustration.

“I said--get away from my sister--I don’t want you here--you’re not taking Josie away from me--”

“No one’s taking anyone away from anyone,” Josie countered, backing up until she was against the door. Hope stood in front of Josie, grunting with the effort of keeping the protection spell active. Every time another object slammed into the bubble, Hope winced and the bubble got smaller.

“Josie, get out of here,” Hope hissed. “It’s dangerous.”

“I am  _ not  _ dangerous!” Lizzie yelled, and then proved her point moot by sweeping the nightstand off the ground and into Hope’s protection bubble. Hope jerked back and the bubble shrank, now barely covering Hope’s toes. Josie grabbed Hope’s waist and hauled her backwards, keeping her safely inside the bubble.

“Lizzie, stop,” Josie demanded. “Lizzie. You’re scaring me. Please stop.” A sob bubbled out from her throat, and the sound made Lizzie’s face go slack. She dropped her hands. The ceiling fan slowed to a crawl, the hovering schoolbooks collapsed, and her knees hit the carpet as she started crying.

Hope released the spell of protection, and swayed slightly on her feet, having spent most of her energy keeping the bubble in place. Josie went to help, but Hope pushed her away. Color came back to her face after a few seconds.

Josie dropped to the floor beside Lizzie, who had reached the part of her meltdowns where she incessantly cried. Lizzie curled up in Josie’s arms and sobbed. Fat tears dotted Josie’s pajama top as Lizzie cried and cried onto her shoulder.

“It’s okay,” Josie murmured. “You’re okay. You’re fine. I’m not lying to you ever again, you hear me? I’ve never lied since and I never will.”

Hope whispered spells to fix what she could. Pages of books floated back to their covers and rebound themselves; clothes straightened and hung themselves up in the closets; the nightstand eased back into its spot, the wall undented, the ceiling erased itself of cracks. Josie watched Hope over her sister’s shoulder. A couple times Hope held out an object and Josie indicated where to put it. Mostly, Hope just guessed.

Eventually Hope worked her way to the corner of the room. She ducked out of sight and when she came up she clutched an envelope in her fist. It was very beat-up but still intact. Hope looked curious for a moment, but then her expression cleared as she remembered it was Penelope’s. She held it up to Josie for directions.

“Keep it,” Josie whispered, and Hope put it in her pocket without a reply.

They got Lizzie to bed and left with a promise to bring her breakfast. Outside in the hall, Josie was pleased the crowd has dissipated, probably bored with the lack of crashes and screams radiating from the bedroom.

Hope halted and took the envelope from her pocket. She held it out. “You want this?”

“No.”

“You want me to burn it?” Hope offered. “I know fire spells that don’t involve setting the entire school aflame.”

Josie snorted. “Shut up.” She bounced in place, thinking about what she wanted to do. “I pictured keeping that letter until I was seventy and married to somebody else and sitting around a fire with my grandkids and going, ‘Do you wanna hear about the time I dated literal Satan?’”

“Or,” Hope began, “you could just open it now.”

“You do it,” Josie said rather impulsively. “You didn’t get to open the letter I gave you, so…”

Hope rolled her eyes. “That’s the logic here? Alright, okay. Let me see if I remember how to open these things. It’s been at least three years since I was allowed to open any envelopes.” She struggled with sliding her fingernail under the flap. “Every time I get an envelope, someone always sets it on fire. Ow! Papercut.” She jerked her hand away and sucked on her finger.

Josie crossed her arms. “Really?”

Hope smirked and opened the envelope like a normal person.

They leaned their backs against the wall as Hope unfolded the letter. “Ooh. She did go overboard on this one.” The thin paper looked homemade (or at least from a craft cabinet), and was decorated with sparkles and stickers.

“Nevermind that, what’s it say?” Josie didn’t want to dwell on the time and effort Penelope had taken to write a letter. She didn’t want to feel guilty over whatever she chose to do--date her or not date her.

Hope cleared her throat and straightened her back, flexing her arms like she was preparing to go to war, and then read dramatically: “My dearest JoJo, I love you more than I love myself. Please check this box if you want to kiss me, check this box if you--”

Josie made a grab for the letter but Hope lifted it out of reach.

“You’re not taking this seriously!”

“I’m just messing with you, Josie. It says,  _ ‘I found my grammy’s spell. I know what it’ll say. YOU know what it’ll say. Wanna give it a try _ ?’ Well, that’s--” Hope paused, then shoved the letter back into Josie’s hands. “That sounds private.”

“It does?”

“I have no idea what it means, so I’m assuming you guys have some sort of secret thing you don’t need to tell me about.” She paused. “Unless you want to.”

Josie bit her lip, then took a look for herself. The letter said exactly what Hope had said, except for the tiny little ‘JoJo’ at the top encased in a heart that could be mistaken as a doodle. She sighed. “Penelope’s family is obsessed with the legend of soulmates.”

“Soulmates?” Hope echoed. “That sounds like New Age crap.”

“Penelope believed it.” Josie folded the letter up real small and shoved it in her pocket. “When we were dating, that’s all we’d ever talk about. Us being soulmates. I believed it because I wanted to, you know? Only then she broke up with me. She promised we were soulmates and then she broke up with me.”

“...And now she wants you back,” Hope finished. She brushed her hair over her shoulder and began playing with the strands. “So what’s this spell about?”

“It’s a legend,” Josie said. “That’s all it is. A legendary ritual that will reveal a person’s soulmate. Penelope is convinced it’ll reveal she’s my soulmate.”

“And you don’t think so?”

“I don’t know,” Josie said truthfully. “There must be a reason I keep kissing her even though I promised myself I wouldn’t, right?”

Hope looked carefully at her. Her blue eyes were warm and curious. “Do you want her to be your soulmate?”

Josie looked away, at the floor. “I don’t know.”

 

* * *

 

 

That afternoon, Josie and Lizzie entered the dining hall and grabbed some food. They took a seat a table away from Penelope. Josie stuffed some loose tomato back in her sandwich and took a bite.

“Don’t freak out,” she said through a mouthful of food, “but I have to talk to Penelope.”

“Do you?” Lizzie said, like she couldn’t understand the logic. “ _ Why? _ ”

Josie set her tomato-and-mozzarella sandwich back on her plate. There were a few kids staring at them, curious from the loud crashes and shouts vibrating from their room that morning, but as soon as Josie made eye contact they looked away. Only Pedro continued staring, chewing on a hot dog with a french fry in his other hand.

“She texted me,” Josie lied. “I don’t know what she wants, but I think we need to discuss the kiss we had the other day. You know, when we were slug drunk.” She felt bad lying--especially because just that morning she had promised she wouldn’t--but figured Lizzie wouldn’t like it if she knew Josie maybe was getting a soulmate. She seemed kind of possessive right now.

Lizzie set her sandwich down too. “I’ll come with. You need backup.”

No. That was not what she needed, not at all. “Lizzie—“

Josie spotted Hope enter the dining hall, Landon in tow. A weird sense of relief washed over her for some reason. Hope looked around for a seat, and Josie caught her eye. She gestured vaguely-- _ get over here. _

Hope’s face lit up and she tugged Landon over to Josie’s spot. She plopped down across from the twins and grabbed some of Josie’s french fries. “What’s up, girl?”

“Oh no no no,” Lizzie threatened, face darkening. “We do not need you here.”

“Wow. What a warm and fuzzy way to greet your friend,” Hope said, not deterred. 

“We’re not friends.”

“Of course we are. Me, you, Josie—and, um—“ she looked at her boyfriend, “--Landon.”

Landon coughed, uncomfortable. Hope nudged him in the ribs. He said quickly, “Yup. That’s what we are. Friends.” He drummed his fingers on the table, then pointed at Lizzie. “What’s your name again?”

Lizzie groaned. “Josie. We’re moving to another table.”

“Wait.” Hope leaned forward and grabbed Lizzie’s arm. Her metal bracelet hit the wooden table and jangled fiercely. “I’m serious about being friends, Lizzie. After last night I thought we mended things.”

Lizzie regarded Hope carefully. “That was before I learned my sister had a crush on you.”

“What?” said Landon. 

Hope ignored him. “ _ Had _ . Had a crush on me. Past tense. I’m no more a threat to you and Josie’s sisterhood than Pedro is. Besides, why are  _ you _ only allowed to date? Don’t you want your sister to be happy?”

Lizzie bristled. “I don’t stop my sister from dating.”

“But only if you try to win her date over for yourself first, right? Because you’re jealous of the attention Josie is giving someone that’s not you.”

Josie put her head in her hands and mumbled, “Stop poking, both of you—“

“I am not—“ Lizzie began in a huff, but then regained control over herself. She tucked her hair behind her ear and dropped eye contact, quite aware she was losing this argument. “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I won’t be going after you. I’m not interested in dating a Mikaelson. And if you excuse me, Josie and I will be leaving now.”

She lurched off the seat and yanked Josie up with an iron grip. Hope winced and mouthed  _ Sorry. _

Josie glared. Hope shouldn’t have poked. 

“That girl’s a narcissistic bitch,” Lizzie spat. “Thank god you don’t have a crush on her anymore.”

But as Lizzie and Josie reached the exit, Penelope appeared a la her usual dramatic entrance. She sidled up behind Josie, grabbed her hand, and pulled her away from Lizzie. When Lizzie protested, all Penelope did was smirk, and after some deliberating, Lizzie came to the conclusion that it was not worth it anymore, and left them there.

“Sorry,” Penelope began, not looking sorry at all. Her outfit today featured a cherry red top that showed off her midriff. Red was her favorite sexy color. Josie knew exactly who she was wearing it for. “Looked like you needed an out.”

“I did,” Josie said dumbly. “Thank you.”

Penelope just smiled, her cherry lips making a perfect smirk. 

“I read your letter,” Josie blurted. 

The sentence seemed to shock Penelope as much as Josie was shocked to wake up to a storm of fabric and denim. She recovered quickly, though. “Knew you couldn’t resist. What do you think? I have the grimoire in my room. We can do the ritual tonight.” Penelope reached out to straighten the ribbon on Josie’s sweater. “And then we can celebrate with some vodka and lingerie.” She winked.

Josie almost said yes, but then Hope was there, walking out of the dining hall with Landon. She gave Josie an excited thumbs up. Josie glared. Hope grinned some more, gave another thumbs up, and then stumbled out of the room with Landon in tow.

Josie was very aware of her heart racing, the blood pumping through her body, the breath filling her lungs. This decision was a big deal. “Before I do anything, I need to see the spell.”

“No problem.” Penelope sidled closer. “Come to my room and have a look.”

“Not just a look—I need a copy,” Josie argued. She didn’t want any chance Penelope had rigged the spell. She was going to take a copy to her dad so he could research and verify it. 

Then she would feel comfortable doing it. 

Penelope’s smile flickered a bit, but she went back to looking excited within seconds. It was adorable when her face lit up like that. It was a lot different from her bad girl face—which was sexy as hell but intimidating. 

Penelope really thought it was going to prove she and Josie belonged together. 

Josie knew the risks. If Penelope was her soulmate, Josie would have no choice in the matter. She’d have to date her. Who was she to dismiss fate?

Peppermint and chocolate scented breath invaded Josie’s nostrils. Penelope stood so close she felt sure they were about to kiss—did she even want to kiss Penelope?—but then the moment was over. 

Penelope whispered, “My bedroom. Right now. You can look all you want.”

Josie gulped and followed her out. 

 

* * *

 

The walk to Penelope’s dorm was so familiar and yet so foreign at the same time. It seemed like years since she’d run down the hallway, holding hands with Penelope and basking in the brilliant allure that was her girlfriend. There was something dangerous and enticing about her, the way she moved, the tilt of her chin, the burning flame in her eyes. Josie couldn’t believe this was the girl who wanted to date her. And maybe more than wanted to date. Maybe they were fated. 

Her bedroom was like a maze of nostalgia. There was the bed they used to sleep in, their limbs tangled and hot with skin on skin; there was the hardwood floor they spun circles around, performing ritual spells in the dead of the night; there was the chair in which Penelope liked to sit, the desk they did homework on, the closet Josie had kept personal items in.

And there was the corner where Penelope had broken up with her. 

The last memory was the freshest and the most emotional. It was like nothing Penelope ever talked about was true. Like she didn’t believe they were soulmates. Like she had suddenly changed her mind. 

It was manipulation, all of it. 

Penelope slid open the bottom drawer in her nightstand. Nestled between tea lights and incense sticks was an aged grimoire. The leather cover was cracked and stiff, and once Penelope had undone the thinning cord binding it shut she greased the leather before opening it. The pages were faded and yellowed, and she turned them carefully until she reached the spot marked by a nasty fraying ribbon. 

She held the book up. “Here it is. My mum found it in gramma’s attic while they were cleaning it out. Have a look.”

Josie took out her phone and opened the camera app. 

“No flash, no flash—“

Josie snapped a picture without glancing at the settings. The room lit up for half a second and then went dim again. Oops. 

Penelope slammed the grimoire shut. “These pages are delicate! No flash, I told you!”

“Sorry,” Josie said quickly, and checked to see if the picture was readable. “I should go.”

“Josie!”

But Josie was already out the door. 

 

* * *

 

 

“The spell certainly looks real,” Alaric said after half an hour of researching and consulting Emma. “The grimoire looks old, the ingredients make sense, the incantation’s translation seems to say exactly what it says it does… it looks like the real thing.”

Josie’s heart leapt. The thought of discovering who her soulmate was was every girl’s dream, right? Every girl wanted to find their prince or princess in shining armor. 

For the first time she really thought about it, about binding Penelope to her heart forever. She could live with that. She could be happy with that. 

“Thanks, Dad,” she said, and hopped off her chair. “Thanks, Emma.”

“Wait, there are some parts I’m concerned about,” her father began, but as if summoned by his words, the door blew open and Hope strode in. 

“We have a problem,” she announced, then noticed the air in the room. “Oops, sorry.”

Alaric put down the print out of Penelope’s spell. “What’s up?”

“Landon found the last Malivore key in his bag,” Hope said, approaching the desk. “He’s pretty sure he grabbed it on our six hour road trip. We made a lot of pit stops. As usual, he doesn’t remember grabbing—“

She froze, her eyes finding the photo of the soulmate spell among all the clutter on Alaric’s desk. “Is that—?”

Josie said, “Yeah. Dad said the spell’s legit. I’m doing it tonight.”

“Now hold on a second,” Alaric began. “I said there are some parts I’m concerned about. But we should talk about Malivore first.”

“Nevermind that,” Hope said impatiently. “It’s not anything we haven’t dealt with before. Josie’s more important. We need to make sure she’s safe. What’s wrong with spell?”

Josie felt her face heat up. “I’ll be fine,” she reassured. 

Hope ignored her. “What’s wrong with it?”

“Well, first off, it’s a binding spell,” Emma explained. “It will bind the two soulmates together in ways it hasn’t specified. It looks like it could be not to your best interest, Josie. We don’t know how it will affect you.”

“Josie’s not doing it then,” Hope said immediately. She didn’t look at Josie, keeping her eyes focused on Emma. 

“Hold on,” Josie said stiffly. “It’s not your decision.”

Hope bristled. She still wasn’t looking at Josie. “Anything else?”

“This is a big decision. It will take your choice away, Josie. Whoever your soulmate is—if the spell even reveals it—you might feel pressured to date them, marry them, have children together. Just because you’re soulmates doesn’t mean your relationship won’t have problems, remember, and there’s no way out if you and your soulmate aren’t compatible. You’re binded for life.”

“Of course we’re compatible,” Josie said. “We’re soulmates.”

“You’re still people,” Alaric reminded gently. 

“Don’t do it,” Hope demanded, turning to Josie. “Just don’t. Don’t.”

“Why not?”

“What if you don’t even like this person?” Hope blurted. “What if you’re disappointed? What if you don’t want to date them and you’re stuck with them for life?”

“I’ll get over it,” Josie defended. “They’re my soulmate.”

Hope groaned in frustration and looked away, drumming her fingers on her thigh, looking way more upset than she should. “Don’t you want to discover for yourself? You’ll never date another person again. Ever.”

Alaric interrupted. “ _ If _ the spell even finds your soulmate.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“There’s a good chance your soulmate isn’t even here. If he or she is not nearby, the spell won’t bind you two. You have to be at least, I’d guess, within twenty miles of your soulmate?” He looked over the spell again. 

“I’m doing it,” Josie decided, more to Hope than anyone else. 

Hope didn’t say anything back. Hope left the room. 

 

* * *

 

 

 It was midnight when Josie knocked on Penelope’s door. It opened immediately, and there stood Penelope, in red silk pajamas that showed off her curves. The light from dozens of candles spilled out into the hallway. There were fresh rose petals sprinkled on the hardwood floor, and rose quartz, and the air smelled of cinnamon and chocolate.

“Wow,” Josie admitted, turning in place to look at all of it. “You really went all out.” Her heart fluttered and she thought maybe, maybe Penelope was her soulmate and she’d be loved like this every day, with her soulmate going all out.

“This is the night it all changes,” Penelope said, her voice low and husky. She knelt on a cushion on the floor and gestured for Josie to sit on the cushion across from her. “The night  _ we  _ change.”

Penelope was the kind of beautiful that was almost painful to look at, like one glance could scorch you. It was the fire that burned in her eyes that initially made Josie attracted to her. Josie had a thing for flames.

Penelope cast a circle around them with a stub of chalk, and then they began the ritual, reciting incantations and channeling magic Josie had never felt before. She loved the words as they fell from her mouth and rose like smoke, and loved siphoning Penelope’s magic—it gave her a high, it gave her strength that flowed through her blood and sparked the tips of her fingers. This spell was like nothing she had ever felt before.

“Now we bind it to you,” Penelope whispered, and wrapped Josie’s arms together with a thick leather cord, the ends of which blossomed to rose quartz crystals where they hung like water drops.

Penelope began reciting a new incantation. Josie was supposed to stay quiet for this one. She had to let the spell  _ happen  _ to  _ her _ .

A warm, blazing glow filled Josie’s body. She felt safe. Protected. Connected. Like she was no longer half, but was now a whole, itching to be with the other person, content in knowing she would be soon.

Her eyes shut. She basked in this pleasant warmth that enveloped everything inside her. She felt herself reaching out, trying to latch on to something, to someone—

—And then she latched on.

Her eyes flew open.

The glow was gone. Penelope’s hands had left hers. Penelope was staring down at the floor in shock. For a moment, Josie was confused—but then realized. Penelope wasn’t her one half to her whole. She wasn’t Josie’s soulmate. She wasn’t anything.

“Leave,” Penelope said in a hoarse whisper.

“Penelope—”

“I said leave!” Penelope shouted, and she looked up then, and her eyes were brimming with tears. “Please go. Just go. Now.”

Josie stumbled up. The aftereffects of the spell hadn’t worn off yet, and she felt dizzy, lightheaded, not quite connected to her body. Her knees shook and she walked into the doorframe by accident. “Ow!”

The door slammed after her and the lock twisted, and Josie heard sobbing on the other side. Her heart heavy, Josie rubbed her stubbed toe. Ouch.

She looked down. A single crushed rose petal dotted the clean floor.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope sat cross-legged on her bed, scrolling through blog posts, humming to herself and trying in vain to not think about what Josie was doing to herself—

“Shit!” she yelled, grabbing her foot. Her toe stung. Badly. Like she had smashed it against something. “What the fuck?”

The pain faded as quickly as it had come. Maybe it was just one of those weird things. She went back to her laptop, saw the time, and then decided to go to bed.

Huh. She felt kinda lightheaded and warm. It was pleasant.

She needed to go to bed.

 

 


	2. but you're not in love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha ha. You forgot about this fanfic, huh?

Josie woke up feeling guilty, except she also felt kinda giddy and cheerful, except she felt guilty.

She checked her phone as she rolled out of bed. It was almost noon. Hope had texted her six times.

_ U awake yet?? _

_ Heyyyy did u do the spell _

_ Are u still asleep it’s 11?? _

_ Is Penelope your soulmate or what _

_ Sorry am I being annoying  _

_ If you’re not awake in 1 hr I’m coming over to poke you u need to eat _

Josie grinned and tapped out a text saying she was awake now, then rose to dress. She felt warm all over. There was a buzzing in her head, a buzzing that, when she paid attention to it, seemed to emanate from something outside her herself. It was like she could feel her soulmate’s thoughts, just of reach, not quite in earshot. 

She had no idea who they were. 

She realized that as she fumbled with her bra. She sensed them, she knew she wasn’t alone anymore, but couldn’t sense anything about them. Not gender. Not hair color. Not voice. 

The door knocked open while Josie was shrugging on a shirt. She shrieked and pulled at the fabric, trying to cover her chest, while Penelope just stood there smirking. 

Josie spun around to hide herself and fixed her shirt, then turned back to Penelope with a frown. “You could’ve knocked.”

“It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”

Josie glared. Penelope had a naughty look on her face, kinda sexy, kinda frightening. 

“You’re cheerful this morning.”

Penelope walked inside and pushed Josie onto the bed like they were about to make out. “I have good news,” she whispered, so close Josie thought for sure they would make out. They were about to make out.

Josie raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I had a witch dream last night,” Penelope began, her hands around Josie’s arms. Josie suddenly became horribly aware she hadn’t brushed her teeth yet and closed her mouth, not wanting the scent to invade Penelope’s nostrils. “My gramma came to me. She explained I was your soulmate - I just didn’t feel the effects of the spell because only the spelled feels it, not the soulmate.” Her face was shining, excited. “Isn’t that great?”

Josie was so stunned she didn’t know how to react.She felt certain Penelope was not her soulmate. But how could she tell? It wasn’t like she knew the name or anything.

And Penelope’s witch dreams were never wrong.

Josie relaxed, feeling the guilt in her settle down and dissolve, because everything was okay after all. Everything was fine.Penelope was her soulmate and therefore Josie didn’t need to feel guilty.

“Oh my god,” she said, allowing a grin to split open her face, letting light burst out. She hopped off the bed, causing Penelope to stagger back a little to make room for Josie’s feet. “Oh my god!”

“I know, right?” She sounded so  _ relieved _ .

Penelope made to kiss her but Josie pulled back. “Whoa there. Haven’t brushed my teeth yet.”

Penelope whispered a spell, Josie’s mouth went minty and fresh, and they collapsed on the bed with their tongues down each other’s throats. Josie sensed the buzzing in her head growing louder, and louder, and she realized that it was true, it had been true all along.

Penelope was hers.

They had managed to get their shirts off when the door opened again. Josie, once more, shrieked and pulled her shirt back on. Penelope didn’t bother.

“Oh,” said Hope, who was standing in the doorway with her eyes averted. “Oh - um - sorry--”

Penelope frowned at her. “Can you leave, please?”

Hope sidestepped from the doorway with another apology leaving her lips, and Josie burst, “What are you doing here?”

“I just wanted to come talk,” Hope said. She still wasn’t looking at Josie or Penelope - the latter of which was still shirtless - “See how things went last night. But it looks like you two - well - I know the answer now - I’ll see you guys later.”

She hurried away without a backward glance.

Penelope fingered the bottom edge of Josie’s shirt. “Now, where were we?”

Josie grinned and let her pull it free.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope sat alone in the common room, doodling furiously on her arm, drawing lines between beauty marks like connect-the-dots and filling in the shapes with blue pen. She was so absorbed in coloring her whole arm she almost didn’t notice Landon plop down beside her.

Landon leaned close. “What’s got you so frazzled?”

Hope let the pen clatter to the floor and grabbed Landon’s face, twisting it to hers. She smashed her lips to his and didn’t regret it. Not on bit.

He entertained her for a few moments, then pulled away. “Seriously, Hope, what’s going on?”

“Nothing,” said Hope. “I just love you.”

“Mm - okay,” Landon said, and kissed her again. “I love you too, you weirdo.”

She giggled and moved forward a bit, wanting to make out again, wanting to forget that Josie and Penelope were soulmates and she was just an old crush that nobody cared about anymore.

Except for Landon.

Landon cared.

Landon said, “Hey, I’m going to go on a road trip for a day. Me and MG and Rafael are going out to - um - town.”

Hope frowned and played with his shirt collar. “Is that a good idea? The last Malivore key is back and that means monsters.”

“Yeah,but the Malivore key is here, not in town, right?” Landon smiled reassuringly and tucked a lock of Hope’s hair behind her ear. “We’re in zero danger.”

Hope doubted that was true. “I should come with you.”

“Really, we’re fine. And it’s a bro trip. It’s important. MG needs this, okay?”

“It’s a full moon tonight. There are a hundred reasons not to do this, Landon.”

“I’ll be fine,” he said.

She let him go. She felt really horny for some reason, an itch she couldn’t quite scratch, but she let him go. Because Josie had her soulmate and she had hers - Landon. And Hope was a good soulmate. She was not going to be suffocating like Penelope could be.

 

* * *

 

 

Josie put her clothes back on. That had been some really good sex. Really good. The best she’d ever had. “Wow.”

Penelope smirked. “I’m really glad we did that spell, JoJo.” She clutched her shirt in her fist but didn’t move to put it on. She stood there, almost naked, the afternoon sun casting a glow around the silhouette of her body. She looked beautiful, but there was something wrong about it, a thought Josie could not place but could not dismiss either.

“So am I,” Josie said. The soulmate spell seemed to amplify all the feelings she normally had down there, like she was sharing the feeling with somebody. “It feels… fantastic.”

Penelope dressed slowly, sliding her clothes on with the familiar grace only Penelope could infuse with dangerous allure. She talked as she dressed, and Josie watched, feeling her shyness fade with every breath she took. She was content now. Safe.

Penelope gave her a long, warm kiss, and then left. Paper fluttered from the bookshelf by the gust of wind produced by the closing door, like they were waving goodbye.

Josie stretched out on the bed and smiled up at the ceiling for a moment, just lying there grinning, just basking in the afterglow of it all, the sweat on her skin, the smell of Penelope’s perfume clinging to the sheets.

Josie smiled, then rose to shower.

As she made her way to the bathrooms, toiletries and towel in hand, she ran straight into Hope, who was striding down the hallway with a stubborn expression on her face. “Hope!”

Hope froze. “Josie. Hi.”

There was something awkward about them, standing there in the hallway, and Josie figured it was probably something to do with what Hope had seen earlier. “Sorry that you walked into me and…” She trailed off, shrugging, face heating up. “Sorry.”

“It’s not a - so are you--” Hope smiled quickly, “--are you guys soulmates then?”

Josie nodded. “Yup.”

Hope nodded too. “Cool.”

Josie nodded. “Yeah.”

They said goodbye and walked in different directions, Josie feeling guilty for some reason. She thought she was past feeling guilty. Penelope was her soulmate. It wasn’t like Hope wanted to be hers.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope helped check in the werewolves to the full moon cages that night. She kept checking her phone, looking to see if Landon had responded to her “WHERE U AT?” text, but he was silent. Rafael hadn’t checked into his cage yet. Hope was starting to worry.

“Alright, guys, we’ve got ten minutes,” Kaleb said, locking another cage.

“No, we can’t,” Hope said, and brandished the clipboard where she had been checking in all the werewolves. “Raf’s still not here.”

Kaleb looked around, his face betraying his worry, although he was clearly trying not to show it. “Well, where the fuck is he?”

“I don’t know, do I?” And then Hope froze, an ice hand plunging down her spine. “Oh no.”

“What?”

“MG, Raf, and Landon - they’re not back from the road trip - they said they were just going into town - something bad must’ve happened--”

“Oh Jesus,” Kaleb muttered, groaning violently and tugging on all the locks sealing the cages shut to make sure they were working. “Okay. Let’s go find Mr. Saltz. And--”

But Hope was already running.

Kaleb groaned. “Dammit.”

Hope checked her watch five times during her sprint around the school, as if it would suddenly show something other than ten minutes until Rafael’s imminent turn and Landon’s potential death. She knew she might be being ridiculous. Rafael might be around this corner, this corner in fact--

She turned it and ran into Josie. Again.

Josie stumbled backwards, and her face sobered immediately from Hope’s expression. “Hope? What is it? What happened?”

Hope grabbed Josie’s arms and said, “I need help.” She felt a sting in her shin, which was weird, because she remembered hitting  _ Josie’s _ shin with her shoe. Hope did not remember anything hurting her own leg. She must have missed that. “Rafael, Landon, and MG went on this road trip. I don’t think they’re back yet. It’s the full moon, Josie, and Rafael’s going to turn any minute now--” She glanced at her watch. Her hand was shaking. She couldn’t steady her arm enough to read the numbers.

Josie grabbed Hope’s hands and steadied them. “Hey, hey. Calm down. They’re probably fine. Can we do a locator spell?”

“Right - yes - right, yeah--”

Hope pulled Josie down the stairs to the boy’s dormitories. She raced into Landon’s room, ransacked his nightstand, and came up with the photo of him and his mother. “This should be good. Let’s do it here.”

They squatted on the floor and got the spell ready. Hope couldn’t stop shaking, but Josie was calm, murmuring comforting things and squeezing her hand as needed. Hope couldn’t shake the feeling something had gone terribly wrong.

They said the spell and waited. Nothing happened. “No,” said Hope. “No, no, no. No. Please no.” She ran her fingers down her hair and gasped. And gasped. And gasped. “No - please--”

“It’s okay, it’s okay, maybe we just did the spell wrong,” Josie comforted, hurrying to reset the ingredients. Her fingers fumbled and she frowned. “It’s okay--”

“Locator spells don’t work if the target is dead,” Hope cried. “He’s dead. He’s dead. Landon is dead.” She glanced at her watch and forced her arm to steady so she could read it. “The full moon’s been ready for five minutes now. Rafael could’ve killed him, or a monster, or a… oh…  _ why  _ did I let him go?” She started crying, racking her body with each sob. “No - please - not again - I can’t do this again Josie, I can’t--”

Josie’s eyes were blurry as well, and she pulled Hope into a hug. Hope’s sobs were so violent both of them jerked with each cry.

“Maybe--” Josie began, trying to think of something, “maybe they did a cloaking spell. Locator spells don’t mix with cloaking spells.”

Hope didn’t reply. Her sobs grew louder.

“Maybe they’re on their way back right now. Maybe they’re gonna show up any second.”

She was wrong.

 

* * *

 

 

They finally found Rafael the next morning. Josie only heard this through the grapevine because she did not see or hear a peep from Hope or her father all day.

She laid in bed with Lizzie curled up next to her. “What do you think is going on?”

“Who cares?” Lizzie muttered.

Josie stiffened. “Lizzie! How could you say that?”

“Don’t you want Landon to be dead?” Lizzie mumbled. She was half-asleep and probably had no idea what she was saying. “You have a crush on Hope still, don’t you? If Landon’s out of the way...”

Josie groaned and flipped over, her back to her. “You’re still on about that?”

“I’m just trying to be a supportive sister,  _ Josie _ .”

“Well, I’m back with Penelope now,” Josie said, and threw the covers off and got up. “So support me that way.”

“That she-demon?” Lizzie said. “You’re back with  _ Satan _ ?”

“I thought you wanted to be supportive? She’s my soulmate!”

“She’s not your soulmate, Josie! Don’t be daft - you don’t even like her!”

Josie spun on her heel and glared at Lizzie so fiercely she might have set her aflame right then and there. “She’s literally my soulmate, Lizzie. We did a spell and found out.”

Lizzie stared at her in shock. “That’s impossible,” she said then, composing herself. “Soulmates aren’t real.”

Josie stared at her for a second, then came to the conclusion she needed to step away for a bit and calm down, so that’s what she did. She turned and walked out the door. Her chest heaved suddenly. Her eyes filled with tears that began leaking fast down her face. She tried to stop it with her hands, completely nonplussed - she wasn’t  _ that  _ upset about Lizzie, was she? - but the tears gave way to violent, hacking sobs. Her knees failed and she slumped to the floor, back against the wall, and sobbed. It was like everything was coming down on her, all at once - the fight with Lizzie, the confusion and hurt over Penelope, everything she hadn’t resolved with Hope, Landon possibly being dead--

Josie sobbed and sobbed, louder and louder, and her bedroom door burst open. Lizzie came rushing out. She fell to the floor beside Josie and gathered her up in her arms. “What’s wrong? I’m sorry, I’m sorry Jose, what’s wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Josie sobbed. Fear was in her chest, soaking her insides, pouring from her eyes. “I don’t know.”

 

* * *

 

 

Hope said, “I’m fine.”

“I’m a phoenix,” Landon said for the tenth time. “That’s so cool.”

MG was silent in the backseat, head pressed against the window and very pointedly not looking at anyone. Kaleb kept trying to talk to him, but he didn’t respond. Rafael was in the same boat, too shell-shocked to do anything but stare at Landon.

“I’m fine, I told you I’m fine,” Hope told Alaric again, shrugging him off. “I’m good.”

“You’re shaking,” Alaric pointed out.

“Wouldn’t you be?” she snapped.

The car ride back to Salvatore was tense and happy all at once. As they got nearer, they finally started talking, telling Landon how cool he looked turned to ash and then unburying himself from the burnt grit. Hope added in where she could, trying to feel more at ease, trying to seem like she wasn’t breaking apart on the inside.

Her emotions felt doubled, more intense, which she guessed made sense under the circumstances.She laughed with the others and shared strained smiles, and when they reached the school she jumped out and found herself clinging to Landon a little harder than necessary.

She wasn’t about to let her soulmate slip away from her.

Not by a long shot.

She slept in his bed that night.

The nightmares came.

 

* * *

 

 

Jose got her period the next morning, and she relaxed, figuring her crying episode the day before had been hormones. She was still a little shaky and couldn’t figure out why. Now she knew. The blood offered a great explanation.

Landon was okay: the entire school knew MG had killed him, but phoenixes couldn’t stay dead apparently. Josie felt glad about that. Hope must be celebrating. Hope must be so happy right now. She had finally found someone indestructible, someone who wouldn’t die like everyone else in her life.

Josie brushed her teeth and glared at herself in the mirror.

She was rinsing when a scream pierced the air, followed by a loud crash and a curse. Then crying. Josie’s first thought was  _ Lizzie, Lizzie’s having another episode,  _ but the scream wasn’t right. It wasn’t of anger or hurt, but of extreme, raw terror.

Josie spit out the last of the bubbly water into the sink and sprinted out. She heard a clatter and knew her toothbrush had been swept to the tile. Oh well. She needed a new one anyway.

She followed the sounds - which had melted from screams to sobs - and barged into Landon’s room, where Hope sat on the bed, shaking, her hand covering her mouth. Landon was on the floor, rubbing his arm, which he seemed to have hurt. “Hope, it’s okay,” he said. “You’re okay.”

Hope turned her head and saw Josie in the doorway, looking stricken. She shook her head wildly, let out a huge sob, and then flung out her arm. The door slammed shut in Josie’s face.

Josie blinked and stood there for a minute, listening to Hope’s cries and Landon’s soothing, before turning around and leaving.

She was crying herself. Damn hormones.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope appeared in the common room after one long hour of crying, insisting she was fine, and doing her makeup. She made sure to use a light coating of waterproof mascara. She wasn’t planning on crying, but - just in case.

She was fine. 

Really. Fine. 

Her soulmate just died and came back to life, so no need to be sad, right? She was fine. 

Josie and Penelope were in the corner talking, and Hope felt a flash of jealousy. Which didn’t make much sense. Josie and a soulmate. Hope had hers. Just because it wasn’t confirmed with candles and grimoires didn’t mean it wasn’t true. 

She settled down on a couch and then suddenly hissed in pain. She lifted her finger and saw a tiny slice in the skin, small drops of blood beading at the middle, kinda like a paper cut. Hope looked around for something that could’ve sliced her finger open. She found nothing. 

Huh. 

She looked back at her finger. It still hadn’t healed. 

She frowned. 

“You okay?” Landon asked as she stood up abruptly. 

“Fine,” she said shortly, like she had all morning. She kept her finger hidden in her shirt sleeve. She rubbed her thumb against it. Still open, still bloody. 

It should have healed by now. 

Hope hurried to the bathrooms and looked herself over in the mirror, checking for more cuts. Something was very wrong about this. She hadn’t sliced her finger on anything. It had happened spontaneously. Were more coming?

She thought: monster. She thought: they’re trying to do something to me. 

The door opened and Hope quickly tucked her finger under her sleeve. The throbbing pain was dulling. She could still prod open the two flaps of her skin with her thumbnail if she tried. 

It was Penelope. She sidled into the bathroom, passing the toilet stalls, and going right to the cupboard. She smiled at Hope as she rummaged through it. “Just getting a bandaid. Josie got a paper cut.”

Hope froze. “What?”

“Stupid textbooks,” Penelope said, and slipped out with another smile. Hope followed her, her eyebrows knitted, her heart pounding. 

She watched Penelope wipe Josie’s finger clean with a tissue. She carefully wrapped a bandaid around it, then kissed it, and she and Josie resumed looking through textbooks. 

Hope looked at her hand. It was the same finger. It was the same cut. It was the same non-healing injury. 

“Hope?” Landon prodded, appearing at her side. “You good?”

“I’m fine,” Hope said. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Was that good? It's not as long as the other but whatever. Please leave a comment. Comments inspire me. They motivate me. Even if you put one letter, I am inspired.
> 
> (But please put more than one letter, maybe, say, two letters. Or two words. Or two sentences. Or two paragraphs. Or two pages. The possibilities!!!)


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